Self-soldering circuit breaker



Dec. 25, 1923.

R. H. MAPLE SELF SOLDERING CIRCUIT BREAKER Original Filed April 26 1918 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 for . 8) Www Patented Dec. 25, 1923.

UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

ROY H. MAPLE, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, ASSIGNOR TO B. H. IMAPLE (.70., OF IN- DIANAPOLIS, INDIANA, A CORPORATION.

SELF-SOLDERING CIRCUIT BREAKER.

Application filed April 28, 1918, Serial No. 230,882.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, RoY H. MAPLE, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Indianapolis, county of 'Marion, and State of Indiana, have invented a certain new and useful Self-Soldering Circuit Breaker; and

I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which like letters refer to like parts.

This invention relates to self soldering circuit breakers of the fusible type and one feature of the invention is the provision in connection With a self soldering circuit breaker including contact blades and a latch,

of a locking pinion and contact pinion support held normally in fixedrelation with each other by fusible material.

A further feature of the invention is in so constructing the locking pinion and the latch cooperating with said locking pinion that when released by an overload, the rotation of the locking pinion will be limited by the latch to bring the same in position for reengagement with the latch when the parts of the circuit breaker are returned to closed position.

A further feature of the invention is the manner of attaching the fuse controlled parts of the circuit breaker whereby said parts may be quickly attached to or removed from the circuit breaker without disconnecting or removing any parts of the circuit breaker.

A further feature of the invention is the provision, in connection with the locking pinion and contact pinion support, of means upon their meeting surfaces to give a positive locking effect with the fusing material when in normal condition and Without interfering or affecting the rotating movement of the pinion when the fusing material is softened.

Afurther feature of the invention is the provision of means for manually operating the circuit making and breaking mechanism. A further feature of the invention is the provision of means for fusing the material for holding the pinion and its support in fixed relation from currents of different values.

A further feature of the invention is the EEQSU Renewed October provision of a push rod for carrying the locking pinion and its support and providlng means thereon for positively moving the contact pinion support out of engagement wlth the contact blades.

A further feature of the invention is to provide an insulating block on the push rod and so mount the locking pinion and its support thereon that said support will be held against lateral or twisting movement and the pinion held against longitudinal movement. A further feature of the invention is in so constructing the contact ends of the blades and the parts of the insulating block and pinion support that they will accelerate the disengagement of the contact pinion support from the contact blades.

A further feature of the invention is the provision of an insulated supporting base for the part of the circuit breaker and so constructing the same that the push rod and latch may be readily attached thereto or removed therefrom while in assembled position.

A further feature of the invention is in so mounting the latch upon the push rod and supporting base that said latch may be manually raised and released from the locking pinion without causing the latch to bend or have yielding movement in any part thereof.

The full nature of the invention will be understood from the accompanying drawings and the following description and claims:

In the drawings Fig. 1 is a bottom plan View of the circuit breaker in closed position. Fig. 2 is a sectional view thereof as seen on line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view as seen on line 33 of Fig. 2, with the circuit breaker in open position.

' Fig. 4: is a detail side elevation of the forthe block 7.

an end elevation thereof. Fig. 11 is a diagramme-tic view of the circuit breaker, showing the manner of connecting the same to the battery, ignition system and generator.

Referring to the drawings in which similar reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, 1 indicates an enclosing frame, to the forward end of which is attached a cover plate 2, and to the rear end of which is attached, in any suitable nrranner, a supporting base 3, said base being preferably constructed of insulating material. Extending through the frame 1 is a push rod 4, the forward end of which is provided with a button 5 which projects through an opening in the cover plate 2, while the opposite end of the rod projectsthrough an opening 6'in the supporting base 3, said rod having an insulating block 7 surrounding the same, and'prefe iaibly resting against the inner end of the push button 5. The block 7 is provided at each side with a vertical seat or" groove 8 and across its top is a transverse seat or groove 9, the vertical grooves being designed to rec-eieve the contact ends 10 of the bent or substantially 'U-shaped pinion support 11, the horizontal bar 12 of the pinion support having a locking pinion 13 mounted thereon, which enters a recess 14 in the The locking pinion 13 is normally held in fixed relationwith the horizontal bar 12 of the pinion support by placing athin layer of fusible material around the horizontal bar over which the locking pinion is placed and in order to give a positive locking action between the bar 12 and interior of the pinion 13, the inner wall of the opening 15 through the pinion is provided with corrugations 16 (see Fig. 7) while the surface of the horizontal bar 12 over which the pinion fits is provided with corrugations 17, and as the fusible material necessarily enters the depressions between the corrugations it will more firmly lock the pinion to the support. As it is necessary for 11s pinion 13 to rotate at times, and as it requires a close fit between the horizontal bar 12 and the interior of the locking pinion, the corrugations 16 are extended in a straight line from end to end of the pinion, while the corrugations 17 (see Fig, 5) of the bar 12 are spirally ar ranged so that while the fusible material will have positive interlocking action, yet the corru ations 16 will ride over the corrugations 1 when the locking pinion is ro tated without any frictional or interlocking action between the corrugations, thus providing the same action of movement between said parts as would result were the corrugations omitted.

Extending through the supporting base .3 are contact blades 18, one of which is conupper face of nected with the batttery 19 and the other with the enerator 20, the free ends of said contact b ades having rearwardly curved fingers 21, which are disposed at an angle to the trend of the contact blades, the outer face of said fingers beingdesigned to' engage the depending contact ends 10 of the pinion support, said contact ends ha ving flattened faces 22 (see Figs. 1, 2 and 3) so as to provide a perfect contact with the fingers. The rear portion of the vertical. faces of the block 7 are also tapered inwardly as shown at 23 so that the block can readily pass between the fingers 21 and by inc ining the fingers and the contact portions of the ends 10 as shown, the spring action of said fingers will tend to force the push rod 4; for- I I wardly to break the circuit between the contact ends 10 and the fingers 21.

As best shown in Figs. 1 and 3 layers of carbon 24 may be introduced between the contact ends 10 and the block 7, said blocks having an outwardly extending beveled face upon which the fingers 21 make the final break, thus obviating any possibility of an arc formin when the circuit breaker is opened or c osed. The inclined ends of the contact blades 18 are entered through slots 25 in the supportin base 3, and in order to securely hold the lades in fixed relation with the block, the ends 26 of the blades passing through said slots are criniped' in such manner that they will be slightly bowed (see Fi 10), causing the central portion or rib 2 to bind against one face of the slots while the edges of the ends on the opposite sides press against the opposite walls of the slots, thereby securely binding the contact blades within the slots.

In order to prevent the blades from being casually removed from the slots, a portion of the ends 26 are struck out to form a projection 28 which passes throughthe slots and beyond the rear face of the supporting base, while the movement of the blades is stopped by slitting the side edges of the blades and bending the upper portion of the slitted parts forwardly to form shoulders 29, which rest against the opposite face-of the supporting base from the projection 28, a

After the contact blades are properly attached to the supporting base, clamps 30 are attached to the ends projecting rearwardly of the base by means of binding screws 31,

which screws also attach the wires 32 to the contact blades.

The push rod 4 is held in its inward position so that the contact blades 18 willengage the contact ends 10 of the pinion support through the medium of the latch 33, the 3 inner end 34 of which is bent at right angles and extended over the push rod 4, said latch also having an angularly shaped bent portion 35 which cooperates with the shoulder 36 on the supporting base 3, said shoulder limiting the upward movement of the rear end of the latch. The end 34 of the latch is entered through the opening 6 and is of sufrod will be held in engagement with the fin gers 21 of the contact blades, until such time as the latch is manually disengaged from the pinion, or until the fusible material is softened by the excess amperage so as to permit the pinion to rotate upon the pinion support, and in either event the push rod and parts carried thereby are thrown forwardly by the tension of the spring 39 surrounding the push rod between the end 34: of the latch and the block '4" on the push rod.

In case that the fusible material is brought to a softened state by excess current so as to break the circuit by permitting the push rod to move forwardly, the shoulder 37 will cause the'pinion to rotate and as the next succeeding tooth will engage the lower face of the latch, said next succeeding tooth will be moved to vertical position as shown in Fig. l, and as the latch is then resting on two of the teeth, the pinion will be heldagainst further rotation, thereby positively positioning the pinion for reengagement with the shoulder of the latch so that when the fusible material again hardens and the push rod is moved inwardly, the shoulder of the latch will engage the vertically extending tooth and hold the circuit breaker in closed position until such time as the fusible material is again softened, or the latch manually disengaged from the pinion.-

As it would be a difficult matter to attach the push rod to the latch after the latch is positioned in the supporting base, it is preferable to firstassemble these tw parts by introducing the end of the push rod through the opening in the end 34 of the latch and then engaging the shoulder of the latch with the locking pinion and when so assembled the forward ends of the latch and push rod are turned downwardly at an angle to the supporting base 3, the opening 6 having a flared or inclined lower end 40 to permit of such movement of the latch and push rod. After the end at of the latch has been introduced through the opening 6, said latch and push rod are swung upwardly and extended at right, angles to the supporting base, the lower end of the angular extension 34 overhanging the face of the supporting base to prevent the withdrawal of the latch.

The cover plate 2 is then introduced over the end of the frame 1, the ends of the push rod and latch projecting through the openings 41 and 42 respectively in said cover plate. As it-is sometimes necessary to man ually operate the circuit breaker, a head 43 of any suitable insulating material is at- I tached to the outer end of the latch so that it can be grasped by the hand without causing a shock.

In order to connect the ignition current to the electric circuit, a contact plate ll is attached to the base 3 by means of a bolt 45,

said bolt being attached to the latch 33 by means of a resistance member or coil 46. The object in providing the resistance coil is to sufiiciently heat the locking pinion as to soften the fusible material from a low amperage, the ignition system carrying approximately 5 amperes. while the generator carries approximately 30 amperes, the re sistance coil serving to create the same amount of heat as is created through the contact blades and contact ends of the pinion support.

In operation, the push rod being moved inwardly until the locking puuon 18 engaged with the shoulder of the latch, should an overload occur, either through the contact blades. or through the resistance coil 46, the pinion 13 will become sufiiciently heated as to soften the fusible material between the locking pinion and pinion support, whereupon the pressure of the spring 39 will force the push rod and parts carried thereby forwardly, thus disconnecting the contact blades 18 from the contact ends 1.0 of the pinion support and thus breaking the circuit between the battery and other parts. As the push rod moves forwardly, the shoulder on the latch will cause the locking pinion to rotate, thereby bringing the next succeeding tooth into engagement with the under face of the latch and as the previously engaged tooth and the newly engaged tooth are both pressing against the lower face of the latch, the rotating movement of the -aga1n be moved inwardly and the latch reengaged with the newly positioned toothon the locking pinion and held in said position until another overload occurs or until upward pressure is applied to the head 43 to manually disengage the latch from the locking pinion.

By arranging the fuse mechanism in this 'manner, many operations of the circuit breaking mechanism may be obtained, as the fusible material will last indefinitely support may be removed and a new one in- I fusible material and more securely intertroduced in its place.

It will further be seen that in addition to the continued resetting of the locking pinion, the operation thereof will be as effective and as rapid as when the ordinary fuse plug is used, with the added advantage that it is notnecessary to provide a new fuse with this device, each time an overload occurs, and the circuit breaker is operated, as is necessary with the ordinary form of fuse.

It will likewise be seen that by arranging the corrugations or ribs of one part in a straight line and arranging the corrugations or ribs of the other part substantially spirally or in non-parallel relation, there is no opportunityfor said roughened or projecting surfaces interlocking with each.

other, although a close fit is maintained, as a part of the straight corrugations will always rest across parts of the spirally arranged corrugations.

It will further be seen that by arranging the corrugations in this manner particles of the fusible material will enter between the corrugations and thereby reinforce the lock the pinionwith its support.

In addition to the advantages previously enumerated a further advantage is the man ner of so arranging the parts that the same locking pinion can be employed in connection with two different currents of appreciably different values, either of which, when receiving an overload will soften the fusible material and release the circuit breaker.

The invention claimed is:

1. A self-soldering circuit breaker, including a locking pinion, a support formed of one strip of metal and having angularly extending ends to which said pinion is soldered, and means in which said angular ends of the pinion support are removably supported for passing an electric current longi tudinally through said support.

. 2. A self-soldering circuit breaker including a locking pinion, a support formed of one strip of metal substantially U-shaped, on the middle portion of which the pinion I is soldered, means for removably mounting said support, and means for passing an electric current longitudinally through said support.

t 3. -A self soldering circuit breaker including a locking pinion, a support having two angularly disposed ends with the locking pinion soldered on the portion intermediate said ends, and means in which said angular ends of the pinion support are mounted so as to be slidably removable.

4:- A self soldering circuit breaker including a locking pinion, a U shaped support on the middle portion of which the pinion issoldered, and means in which the ends of said support are mounted so as to he slidably removable.

5. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with an insulated mounting means having seats therein, of a locking pinion, and a support for said locking pinion having parts thereon arranged to enter said seats and hold the support against lateral or twisting movement.

6. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination of a locking pinion with a corrugated central opening, a corrugated sup-' port for the pinion, said corrugations being in non-parallel relation and a fusible material on" said corrugated surfaces.

7. In a self-soldering circuit breaker, the combination of a locking pinion, a supporting member therefor formed of one strip of metal substantially U-shaped and having contact terminals, and insulating means between the contact terminals of the support- 100 ing member.

8. In a self-soldering circuit breaker, the V combination of a locking pinion, a supporting member therefor formed of one strip of-metal having two angularly extending W ends forming contacts and a middle portion upon which the locking pinion is supported, and insulating means upon the contacts of the supporting member.

9. In a self soldering ,circuit breaker, the 0 combination with a locking pinion having an opening, said opening having corrugations, of a support for said pinion, that portion of the support passing through the locking pinion having corrugations thereon, U the corrugations of one part extending in a straight line and the corrugations of the other part being spirally arranged.

10. In a thermal circuit breaker, the combination of a circuit breaker switch means, '1 a catch therefor, fusible means for maintaining said catch in operative position and for releasing said catch upon the passage of a predetermined current through said switch means, manually operated means for closing said switch means, and other manually operated means for opening said switch means and releasing the same from engagement with said catch. I

11. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the

load occurs, of means adapted to engage one of said teeth and lock the circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed positlon under normal conditions, said locking means causing the pinion to rotate when the material is fused and the circuit making and breaking mechanism opened, and positioning the next tooth for engagement with the locking mechanism and holding the pinion so positioned until the fusible material is reset.

13. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion having teeth thereon, a supporttherefor, and fusible material between the pinion and its sup- )ort for normally holding the pinion in fixed relation with the support, of a latch adapted to engage one of the teeth of said pinion to hold the circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed position under normal conditions, said latch causing said pinionto rotate when the fusible material is fused from an overload and the parts carrying the pinion are moved outwardly, said latch positioning a succeeding tooth for reengagementwith the latch and holding the same in fixed position until the fusible material is reset, whereby continued operations of the circuit making and breaking mechanism may be accomplished without renewing the fusing parts.

14. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion having teeth thereon, a pinion support and fusible material between the support and the pinion adapted to be repeatedly fused and reset, of a locking latch adapted to interlock with one of the teeth of said pinion to hold the circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed position under normal conditions, said latch being arranged to position the next succeeding tooth for rel-engagement with the latch and hold said tooth in its set position until the fusible -material is reset.

15. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion having a plurality of teeth thereon, a pinion support and fusible material for normally holding the locking pinion against rotation upon the support, of circuit making and breaking mechanism, a latch adapted to engage one of the teeth of the pinion to hold the circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed position, said latch being adapted to engage two of the teeth'when the fusible material 1s fused, whereby one of the teeth will be positioned for engagement with the latch when the circuit making and breaking mechanism is again closed and held in said position until the fusible material is reset, whereby a multiplicity of fusing actions may result without changing any of the fusing parts.

16. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion having a plurality ofteeth thereon, and fusible materialfor normally holding the locking pinion against rota'tion, of circuit making and breakmg mechanism, a latch adapted to engage one of the teeth of the pinion to hold the circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed position, said latch being adapted to engage two of the teeth when the fusible material is fused, whereby one of the teeth will be positioned for engagement with the latch when the circuit making and breaking mechanism is again closed and held in said position until the fusible material is reset whereby a 'multiplicity of fusing actions may result without changing any of the fusing parts, and means to manually re lease the latch from the locking pinion.

17. In a self soldering circuit breaker, a locking pinion, a pinion support, fusible material for normally holding the locking pinion against rotation upon the support, and means to connect different currents of different values with said locking pinion whereby either current will cause the fusible material holding the locking pinion to fuse when an overload occurs.

18. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion, means to normally hold the pinion against rotation, and a base having an opening therethrough, of circuit making and breaking mechanism, a latch adapted to cooperate with said pinion to normally hold said circuit making and breaking mechanism in closed position, one end of said latch extending at right angles and adapted to project through said opening and overlap the face of the base member to hold the latch against longitudinal movement, the walls of said opening holding the latch and parts connected therewith against rotation.

19. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a push rod, a base member having an opening therethrough, and a looking pinion carried by the push rod, of a latch adapted to engage said locking pinion to normally hold the push rod against out ward movement, said latch having an angular extension at one end, adapted to extend through the opening in the base and overlap the face of the base to hold thelatch against longitudinal movement, said opening having a flared portion whereby the end of the latch and push rod may be introduced lll through the opening when in assembled position. I

20. A self soldering circuit breaker in eluding a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried thereby and fusibly mounted, and a latch yieldingly mounted on the push rod for engaging said pinion.

21. A self soldering circuit breaker including a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried by the block and fusibly mounted, a latch for engaging the lockin pinion, and a spring for holding the late in looking position normally and for actuating the push rod when the latch is released.

22. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a push rod, a block carried thereby, and a locking pinion carried by the block, of a latch, a base having an opening through which one end of the latch and the push rod operates, and a spring holding the latch in locking position so the latch may be manually released from the locking pinion without bending any art of the latch.

23. In a se f soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a locking pinion, a support therefor, and fusible material for normally holding the pinion fixed to its support, of a latch for engagement with said locking pinion, means to connect said latch with a circuit, and a current carrying resistance carried by said latch for causing the fusing of the fusible material when an overload of current occurs.

24. A self soldering circuit breaker, in-

I eluding current carrying means adapted to be connected to different circuits of different current values, and a single fusing point associated with said current carrying means and adapted to be operated from either of the currents in said means when so connected.

25. In a self soldering circuit breaker, the combination with a push rod, and an insulating block carried thereby, said insulating block having grooves therein and a recess, of a locking pinion adapted to enter said recess and be held thereby agai nst. longitudinal movement, and a substantially U-shaped support for said locking pinion,

the extending ends thereof entering said grooves so as to be, removedly held into' engagement with the insulating block.

26. A self soldering circuit breaker, including current carrying means adapted to be connected to different circuits of different cu nt values and a single fusing means to which all of said current carrying means are attached, adapted to be operated by any of the currents in said means when so connected.

27. A self soldering circuit breaker including a fusibly mounted pinion and a latch in engagement therewith for conravens;

trolling said circuit breaker, and manually operated means for releasing said latch.

28. A self soldering circuit breaker including a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried thereby and fusi-bly mounted, a latch yieldingly mounted on the push rod for engaging said pinion, and insulated means connected with said latch. and adapted to be manually operated for releasing the latch.

29. A self soldering circuit breaker including a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried thereby and fusibly mounted, a latch yieldingly mounted on the push rod for engaging said pinion, and means for preventthe latch.

30. A self soldering circuit breaker including a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried thereby and fusibly mounted, a latch yieldingly mounted on the ush rod for engaging said pinion, sai bend in it, and a base having a recess in which said bend operates and formed to prevent any turning movement of said latch. v I

31. A self soldering circuit-breaker including a push rod, an insulating block carried thereby, a locking pinion carried thereby and fusibly mounted, a latch yieldingly mounted on the push rod for engaging said inion, a casing with an angular slot in 1t, an insulating block secured to said latch and extending through the slot 'in the casing and angular in cross section so thatit cannot turn in said slot, and whereby the latch can be manually operated.

32. A self soldering circuit breaker including a locking pinion, a sup rt on which said pinion is soldered, and means for mounting said pinion support and provided with a slot to form projections beside said pinion to prevent longitudinal movement thereof upon the support when the solder is fused.

33. A self soldering circuit breaker in cluding a locking pimon, means on which said pinion is soldered, and means for bringing the pinion after it has been fused into a definite position for subsequent operations.

34:. A heat-actuated circuit breaker including a loclnng pinion, a support formed of one elongated strip of metal and having an angularly extending end, said pinion being mounted upon said support, means interposed between said support and said pinion for normally securing said inion non-rotatably on said support and fusible by heat latch having a.

overload of current is passed through the same.

35. A circuit breaker including in combination a Ushaped pinion support, a locktudinally thereof, said ing pinion rotatably mounted on said support and normally secured thereto in nonrotatable relation, means for securing said U-shaped support, and means for passing an electric current longitudinally throughsaid support, said lockingpinion being rotatable when an overload of current is passed through said support.

36. In a self-soldering circuit breaker the combination of a pinion support, a pinion on said support, fusible means normally secur ing said pinion to said support, a contact for supplying current to said support, and a latch engageable by said pinion for maintaining said contact in closed circuit position, said pinion being rotatable when an abnormal electric current is passed through said support and fuses said fusible means to release said contact from the closedcircuit position, said contact tending to move the pinion sup ort to open said circuit.

37. A se fsoldering circuit .breaker includin in combination a pinion support, a locking pinion rotatable on said support and normally held in non-rotatable relation thereon, means for supplying current to said pinion support so that the same passes longiinion being rotatable on said support w en an overload of current is carried thereby, a latch operatively associated with said pinion, a contact maintained in closed circuit position when said pinion is operatively associated with said latch, and insulated means associated with said latch for operating the latter. to release said pinion therefrom and permit said contact to open the circuit.

38. A self-soldering circuit breaker of the plunger t pe, including plunger type switch operab e circuit breaking means, a

fusibly mounted pinion associated with said plunger switch means, a latch in engagement with said pinion for controlling said switch means, manually operable means for closing said switch means, and other manually operable means for releasing the latch for releasing the plunger switch means.

39. In a thermal circuit breaker, the combination of a circuit breaker switch means, a catch therefor, fusible means for main taining said catch in operative position and for releasing said catch upon the passage of a predetermined current through said switch means, manually operated means for closing said switch means, other manually operated means for opening said switch means and releasing the same from engagment with said catch, and a high resistance contact means associated with said switch means for taking the are when the circuit breaker switch means is open.

40. A self-soldering circuit breaker of the plunger type, including plunger type switch operable circuit breaking means, a fusibly mounted pinion associated with said plunger switch means, a latch in engagement with said pinion for controlling said switch means, manually operable means for closing said switch means, other manually operable means for releasing the latch for releasing the plunger switch means, and a high resistance contact means associated with said switch means for taking the are when the circuit breaker switch means is open.

41. A self-soldering circuit breaker, including a pair of parallel plates, plunger switch means positioned between said plates, a fusibly mounted pinion, a latch in engagement therewith for controlling the plunger switch means, manually operable means for releasing said latch to release said switch means, and other manually operable means for actuating said plunger switch means to close said swltch means.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto atfixed my signature.

. ROY H. MAPLE. 

